Interobserver Agreement for Noninvasive Bladder Pressure Flow Recording With Penile Cuff

Purpose: We assessed variability in interpreting noninvasive measurements of bladder pressure and urine flow between experienced and novice users of the penile cuff.Materials and Methods: Urodynamicists at 6 sites were asked to use the penile cuff test as part of clinical assessment in 30 men presenting with lower urinary tract symptoms. After a short training period they measured maximum flow rate and cuff interruption pressure from penile cuff test recordings to enable categorization of bladder outlet obstruction using a nomogram. Similar measurements were then made on the same traces by 2 expert observers from the originating center. Interobserver differences were assessed.Results: Complete agreement on obstruction categorization was seen in 77% of subjects, which increased to 86% when plots positioned on category boundary lines were allocated to the favored category. The 95% confidence limits of interobserver variability in maximum flow rate and cuff interruption pressure measurements were ± 1.7 ml pe...